Happy Holidays everyone! SubwayWeekender is taking a break this weekend so I can spend the holidays with family and friends. This means there will not be a map this weekend. But make sure to check back for the first map of 2009! Merry Christmas to all. And Happy Tracks New York!

Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »

Well, it’s the last weekend before Christmas and the city even got a momentary layer of snow to make it look the part. And once again, the MTA continues its tradition of cutting the weekend changes down to the bare minimum during the holiday season. Heck, the G even continues to run on Queens Blvd! Manhattan, especially, is the beneficiary of the hordes that go out to the shops and necessitate proper subway service. There is not a single service disruption to be found on the island of Manhattan this weekend! Manhattan has suffered an incredible slate of changes in recent months so for once Manhattanites, my services are superfluous. Indeed, it is a slow week here at SubwayWeekender but that just leaves more time for decking the halls. Have a great weekend and maybe even a Friday snow day! Happy Tracks New York!

Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »

Saturday Morning Update: G trains are running normal! And by normal, I mean they will run local on Queens Blvd for the holiday season including on weekends. Let’s here it for a last gasp of the G on Queens Blvd!

Welcome back New York! Well it is a rainy evening. Just think, if this were snow it would be over 2 feet of snow! Oh well, since I don’t own a car I always root for snow. It’s just more fun. I’m happy to be inside this weekend making the map for all of you good people. As always, the MTA takes a maintenance slow-down during the holiday season. This weekends major changes avoid most major shopping areas (with the exception of Fordham Rd) but what few changes there are are often not all weekend long. While you are out and about this weekend, make sure to check out the final installment of Clarke Dunham’s model train set at Citigroup Center on Lexington Ave. The train show will not survive these harsh economic times and this is the last year it is running so get it while you still can! As always, click on the map below. Happy Tracks New York!

Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment »

SATURDAY UPDATE: One thing missed for this Saturday: Today only, Manhattan-bound F trains skip Sutphin and Van Wyck Blvds. I also indicated more detail on the 3 train change. All trains in both directions stop at the Manhattan-bound platform. Have a good weekend.
Welcome Back New York! Well the biggest transit news of the year is out today as the Ravitch Commission released a report on how to save the MTA from financial catastrophe. The interesting thing is that the toll plan basically amounts to a modified congestion pricing plan because under the plan all access to Manhattan would be tolled. All the East River and Harlem River bridges would be tolled. The East River bridges would have a toll similar to the RFK (aka Triborough) and the Harlem River Bridges would have a $2.00 toll. This is raising the ire of much the same crowd that objected to congestion pricing, though strangely Sheldon Silver seems more supportive. The other major aspects are an 8% fare hike which would amount to a monthly pass costing $88.00 instead of $100.00 on the MTA rescue plan. And there will also be a payroll tax of $0.33 for every $100 for all businesses in the City, LI, Westchester, Putnam, Dutchess, and Rockland Counties.

Overall, I think this is a really solid plan that spreads the burden around. I was admittedly lukewarm about congestion pricing before but since it seems as if it would have been extremely helpful. So I’m glad the city gets a take two on congestion pricing. The payroll tax has met with mostly positive reaction and the fare hike is less severe than might have been. One other thing I completely support is the idea that the MTA will be able to match inflation on transit fares without public approval. This will make each fare hike a less difficult and burdensome process and be guaranteed to keep things fair. If New York is serious about transit, they simply can not go forward with a plan that raises fares 25% and cuts service. The state has found a plan that would not impact any one community too greatly and would allow service to remain solid while continuing to build the 2nd Ave subway and other important projects. Get your representatives in Albany to get this passed. Best of luck out there this weekend. Happy Tracks New York!

Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »